South Korean teachers yesterday rallied to demand better protection of their rights and to protest what they say is widespread harassment by overbearing parents that has led colleagues to take their own lives.
Complaints by public-school teachers over mistreatment by parents and students, including being accused of child abuse for disciplining pupils, have grown sharply after a young teacher was found dead in July in an apparent suicide.
Scores of teachers had vowed to take a leave of absence to join the protest. Government and school board officials scrambled to stave off major disruptions of classes and promised legal steps to better protect educators.
Photo: Reuters
The number of teachers who stayed away from class was not immediately clear, but local media said dozens of schools across the country were expected to close because teachers said they would not work.
Authorities said collective action by teachers to disrupt classes was illegal and warned of disciplinary measures.
The South Korean teachers union is not involved in organizing yesterday’s demonstrations, said the group leading the protests, Everyone Together As One.
“We will protect them [the teachers] and make changes so that not one more teacher chooses to take their life,” organizers said in a statement.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol yesterday ordered officials to listen to the teachers’ demands and work to protect their rights, his office said.
In July, an elementary-school teacher was found dead at school after reportedly expressing anxiety over complaints from a parent over a dispute among students.
Teachers across the country have since been holding vigils and demonstrations every weekend to mourn her death, leading up to a rally on Saturday where as many as 200,000 teachers gathered near the National Assembly in Seoul.
Another 20,000 were expected to take to the streets yesterday to join a demonstration near the parliament, organizers said.
As of June, 100 public-school teachers had committed suicide in South Korea during the past six years. Fifty-seven taught at elementary schools, government data showed.
South Korea has the highest rate of suicide among developed countries, data from the WHO and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development showed, with more than 20 people per 100,000 population taking their lives.
The South Korean Ministry of Education has vowed to prevent incidents of teachers’ being punished for legitimate educational activity, and improve communication between teachers and parents.
Under the government plan, teachers would be guaranteed the right to avoid calls from parents on their personal phones, among other measures.
“The number of indiscriminate child abuse reports has been increasing, as students rights were overly emphasized while those of the teachers weren’t respected,” the ministry said in a release. “We will support teachers so that they can focus on education, free of concerns over getting indiscriminate complaints of child abuse.”
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